Saracens make it three in a row
Fri, 22 Aug 2008 22:52
Saracens claimed their third successive pre-season victory, as they ran out 23-19 winners against the Newport Gwent Dragons in a thriller at Rodney Parade on Friday.
First half tries from Chris Jack and Kameli Ratuvou had given the visitors a 17-6 half-time advantage, but the Dragons fought back in the second half to trail by just a point midway through the second half.
However, the boot of Glen Jackson calmed the Saracens nerves and secured the third victory in a week after wins over Western Force and Toulon.
It was a slow start to the game with neither side stamping their authority on the match and numerous handling errors and penalties.
But the action picked up on 10 minutes when Dragons flyhalf James Arlidge struck the first of two quick penalties to give his side a 6-0 lead.
Saracens were slow to get going in the match despite a couple of early steals at the line-out from Chris Jack and it wasn't until Glen Jackson registered the visitors first points on the scoreboard that they began to liven up.
Following Jackson's kick on 24 minutes, Chris Jack burst over the line for the first try of the evening. After a line-out on the 22, the Dragons tapped the ball back but Nick Lloyd was first to the loose ball and released Cencus Johnston before Jack applied the finishing touches with a powerful drive over the line. Jackson converted from out wide.
That lead was extended on 36 minutes with a well executed try from Kameli Ratuvou. Jack and Jackson linked well in midfield and the flyhalf burst forward into space before releasing the Fijian flyer. He stepped inside one tackler before wrong-footing the last man to touch down. Again Jackson added the extras.
The first half ended with Michael Owen held up over the line to be denied a try on a return to his former club as Saracens ended the first half in the ascendancy.
The second half began with Mark Harris replacing Richard Haughton at fullback. The South African, formerly with the Lions, is currently on trial with the North London club.
The Dragons started quickly after the break and crossed the line within minutes of the restart. Heavy pressure on the visitors line ended with the ball being worked wide and Ashley Smith touching down in the corner. Arlidge converted.
The changes then came in the Saracens line-up with Don Barrell and Hugh Vyvyan both taking the field in place of Chris Jack and Kris Chesney.
Jackson extended the lead to seven points once again on 56 minutes, after Noah Cato was caught by a high tackle but Arlidge was on target against four minutes later to make it 16-20 going into the final quarter.
The task got tougher for the visitors on 63 minutes when referee Tim Hayes went to his pocket for a yellow card after Steve Borthwick was ruled to have handled on the ground.
Replacement James Tovey made it a one-point game on 71 minutes after Cencus Johnston was caught on the wrong side but Jackson struck another three minutes later as Borthwick trotted back onto the field after his spell in the sin bin.
That was the final action of the game as Saracens held off the second half fightback from the home side to claim the victory.
Scorers:
Newport Gwent Dragons:
Try: Smith
Con: Arlidge
Pens: Arlidge 3, Tovey
Saracens:
Tries: Jack, Ratuvou
Cons: Jackson 2
Pens: Jackson 3
Yellow card: Steve Borthwick (Saracens, 64 - hands in ruck)
Teams:
Newport Gwent Dragons: 15 Ashley Smith, 14 Gareth Maule, 13 Rory Sidey, 12 Marc Stcherbina, 11 Richard Fussell, 10 James Arlidge, 9 Wayne Evans, 8 Lewis Evans, 7 James Harris, 6 Joe Bearman, 5 Luke Charteris, 4 Adam Jones, 3 Rhys Thomas, 2 Tom
Willis (captain), 1 Adam Black.
Replacements: 16 Lloyd Burns, 17 Lee Harrison/ Hugh Gustafson, 18 Adam Brown, 19 Jamie Ringer/ Richard Parks/ Grant Webb, 20 Phil Dollman, 21 Jason Tovey, 22 Rob Lewis.
Saracens: 15 Richard Haughton, 14 Brent Russell, 13 Kameli Ratuvou, 12 Adam Powell, 11 Rodd Penney, 10 Glen Jackson, 9 Neil de Kock, 8 Michael Owen, 7 Andy Saull, 6 Chris Jack, 5 Kris Chesney, 4 Steve Borthwick (captain), 3 Cencus Johnston, 2 Matt Cairns, 1 Nick Lloyd.
Replacements: 16 Alex Walker, 17 Tom Mercey, 18 Hugh Vyvyan, 19 Dave Seymour, 20 Micky Wilson, 21 Gordon Ross, 22 Noah Cato.
Referee: Tim Hayes
Touch judges: Neil Perkins, Peter Mortimer
